This invention pertains to hand-held can openers of the type having a squeeze-type action to latch onto and pierce the can with a cutter and subsequently rotate the can past the cutter.
The invention particularly is directed to an improved one way clutching assembly for converting the reciprocal motion of the handles of a hand-heldopener into unidirectional rotation of a can rim drive or feed wheel. The invention also relates to improvements in attaching the opener to the can.
Hand-held can openers of this type have been disclosed for squeezing handles together for rotating a drive wheel to advance the can past the cutter. U.S. Pat. No. 5,022,159 is an example of such a can opener. This U.S. Pat. No. 5,022,159 is owned by the assignee of this invention.
One of the difficulties with hand-held can openers is to provide a can rim drive wheel clutching assembly that drives the wheel unidirectionally, but does not skip or fail to operate with minor wear. Another difficulty comes from reliably attaching the opener to the can and piercing the can lid.
This invention is directed to a hand-held can opener in which an improved one way clutching assembly is provided for rotating the can rim drive wheel in one direction only. The clutching assembly provides positive driving action in the desired direction, but allows ease of slippage in the opposite direction. This one way clutching assembly in the combination provides for an improved driving arrangement with long lasting use and minimum skipping of the rotation during the oscillations of the handle.
This invention is also directed to an improved arrangement for more reliably attaching the opener to the can and piercing the can with the cutter.